Shooting range system

ABSTRACT

A method for monitoring shooting, the method may include sensing, by a shoot monitor that is coupled to a shooter, a shooting executed by the shooter; generating and transmitting to a computer shoot data reflecting the shooting executed by the shooter by the shoot monitor; sensing hits of a target by a hits monitor; generating and transmitting to the computer hits data reflecting the hits by the hits monitor; wherein the hits monitor differs from the shoot monitor; receiving, by a computer, the shoot data and the hits data; and generating, by the computer a result that is indicative of (a) the shooting executed by the shooter and (b) hits resulting from the shooting executed by the shooter.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority from provisional patent Ser. No. 62,098,361 filing date Dec. 31, 2014 which is being incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

There is a growing need to monitor shooters.

SUMMARY

According to an embodiment of the invention there may be provided a method for monitoring shooting, the method may include sensing, by a shoot monitor that is coupled to a shooter, a shooting executed by the shooter; generating and transmitting to a computer shoot data reflecting the shooting executed by the shooter by the shoot monitor; sensing hits of a target by a hits monitor; generating and transmitting to the computer hits data reflecting the hits by the hits monitor; wherein the hits monitor differs from the shoot monitor; receiving, by a computer, the shoot data and the hits data; and generating, by the computer a result that is indicative of (a) the shooting executed by the shooter and (b) hits resulting from the shooting executed by the shooter.

The shoot monitor may include an elastic band that may include one or more sensor.

The shoot data may reflect only a time and location of a firing phase of the shooting.

The shoot data may reflect a firing phase and a cock phase of the shooting.

The shoot data may reflect a firing phase, a cock phase and a draw phase of the shooting.

The method may include providing an indication to the shooter, using the shoot monitor, that a shooting session started and that the shooting session ended.

The method may include correlating between shots and hits based on timing information provided by the shoot monitor and by the hits monitor.

The shoot monitor may include an accelerometer and an acoustic sensor.

The hits monitor may include a first sensor for sensing an occurrence of a hit and a second sensor for sensing a location of the hit; second sensor is triggered by the first sensor.

The method may include pairing shooting to hits. The pairing may be responsive to the timing of the shooting and the hits and/or to the identifiers of the hit sensor and the shoot sensors that are paired to each other before the shooting is executed.

A system for monitoring shooting, the system may include : a shoot monitor for sensing a shooting executed by the shooter and for generating and transmitting to a computer shoot data reflecting the shooting executed by the shooter; a hits monitor for sensing hits of a target and for generating and transmitting to the computer hits data reflecting the hits; hits monitor differs from the shoot monitor; a computer for (a) receiving the shoot data and the hits data; and (b) generating a result that is indicative of the shooting executed by the shooter and hits resulting from the shooting executed by the shooter.

The shoot monitor may include an elastic band that may include one or more sensor.

The shoot data may reflect only a time and location of a firing phase of the shooting.

The shoot data may reflect a firing phase and a cock phase of the shooting.

The shoot data may reflect a firing phase, a cock phase and a draw phase of the shooting.

The system may be configured to providing an indication to the shooter, using the shoot monitor, that a shooting session started and that the shooting session ended.

The system may be configured to correlating between shots and hits based on timing information provided by the shoot monitor and by the hits monitor.

The shoot monitor may include an accelerometer and an acoustic sensor.

The hits monitor may include a first sensor for sensing an occurrence of a hit and a second sensor for sensing a location of the hit; second sensor is triggered by the first sensor.

The system may be configured to pairing shooting to hits.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The subject matter regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. The invention, however, both as to organization and method of operation, together with objects, features, and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following detailed description when read with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a shooter and a system according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a system according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a method according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates three axes readings of a three axes accelerometer that monitors a fire phase according to an embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 5 illustrates three axes readings of a three axes accelerometer that monitors a cocking phase according to an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The subject matter regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. The invention, however, both as to organization and method of operation, together with objects, features, and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following detailed description when read with the accompanying drawing.

In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, and components have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the present invention.

The subject matter regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. The invention, however, both as to organization and method of operation, together with objects, features, and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following detailed description when read with the accompanying drawings.

It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration, elements shown in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements may be exaggerated relative to other elements for clarity.

Further, where considered appropriate, reference numerals may be repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements.

Because the illustrated embodiments of the present invention may for the most part, be implemented using electronic components and circuits known to those skilled in the art, details will not be explained in any greater extent than that considered necessary as illustrated above, for the understanding and appreciation of the underlying concepts of the present invention and in order not to obfuscate or distract from the teachings of the present invention.

Any reference in the specification to a method should be applied mutatis mutandis to a system capable of executing the method.

Any reference in the specification to a system should be applied mutatis mutandis to a method that may be executed by the system.

The terms “cock” means the tension the mainspring of a firearm in preparation for firing, such as by pulling back the external hammer, pulling back the slide of a pistol, or opening and closing the barrel(s) of a break-open gun.

The term “draw” means pulling up a firearm or out of a receptacle or place where the firearm was seated or carried.

The term “fire” means the discharge of a bullet from the firearm.

The term “shooting” includes the phases of draw, cock and fire.

According to an embodiment of the invention there is provided a system that may record, analyze and display the performance of shooters. This is done by recording the shots and the hits on the targets. The system may pair between shots and hits and thus may provide indication about the success of the shooting.

A shooter may wear a shoot monitor such as an elastic band containing one or more shoot monitor. The shoot may be attached to the shooter in various manners. It can be embedded in a shirt, band, attached to the firearm, to an arm of the shooter or to any other body organ. In some embodiments the shoot monitor is not attached to the shooter but is located in a position that will enable the shoot monitor to monitor the shooter. For example, the shoot monitor can be an image sensor, an accelerometer positioned beneath a surface on which the shooter stands, and the like.

The target is equipped with a hits monitor that includes one or more sensor that may sense target hits.

The data from both shoot monitor and target monitors is transmitted to a computer which stores, matches and analyzes the data. The computer may be any computerized system. The computer may be a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a server, a gaming machine, a wearable computer, a mobile phone, a smartphone, and the like. The computer may include hardware components such as a processor, a microprocessor, a central processing unit, a digital signal processor, a tailored ASIC, a FPGA and the like.

The computer may process data from the shoot monitor and the hits monitor by executed software, an application, firmware and the like. The computer may be positioned in proximity (few till few tens of meters) of the shooter or may be remotely positioned. The computer may reside in a cloud computerized environment.

The results are displayed on a personal display (positioned near the shooter) and/or on a common display (seen by all the shooters). The data can be exported to other systems or to Web sites or Internet applications such as Facebook and twitter.

If the targets are located far from the computer, an access point or other communication relay is added.

A variant of the system is the Infantry Training system (ITS). When operating as an ITS the system may receive the shoot data stored in the shoot monitors not in real time (only at predefined times such as the end of a training session) The data is stored in the shoot monitors of the shooters until the end of the training, when it is collected over the air by an application (that runs on a computer or a handheld device such as a phone).

The data is analyzed and displayed together with displaying the locations and movements of the trainees. It can be shown as a layer over tactical maps or on its own.

A derivative system from ITS is a system for amusement shooting places (Paintball).

Here the system produces a summary of all the activities—data and animation, which is delivered to the participants.

For systems for training units in urban combat, GPS repeaters are installed, so the exact location of each participant is recorded.

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a shooter and a system according to an embodiment of the invention.

In FIG. 1 a shooter 10 is equipped with a shoot sensor (termed “shot sensor) 20 and a gun 12, the target 40 is equipped with a hit sensor 50, the computer 70 executes an application (termed iSRS (improving shooting range system) application).

FIG. 1 also illustrates access point 81 and GPS repeater 82. Access point 81 transfers data and commands between computer 70, common display 83 and at least one of shoot sensor 20 and hit sensor 50.

The shoot monitor

The shoot monitor may be packaged inside an elastic band or otherwise coupled to a shooter.

The shoot monitor may include at least one of the following (see FIG. 2):

-   -   a. A Real time clock 21.     -   b. One or more sensors 22—a sensor can be single axis or         multiple axes accelerometers—to record the accelerations during         the shooting process. Other sensor types that can be used are         acoustic sensors, single axis or multiple axes piezoelectric         sensors or single axis or multiple axes gyroscopes. The one or         more sensors may track the movement of the shooter and/or detect         the firing of the bullet. The one or more sensors may include a         magnetometer—3 axes sensor to find hand orientation.     -   c. An audio and/or visual interface 23 that may include one or         more audio-visual elements such as one or more light emitting         diodes (LEDs) to alert the user, a buzzer to alert the user, a         personal display 23′ and the like.     -   d. A communication module 24 to transmit the data in real time,         directly or indirectly to the computer. This can be wireless         transceiver like BLE or NFC or WiFi or ZigBee or a combination         of them. The communication module may a short range (up to few         meters) transceiver or a long range transceiver.     -   e. A location determining unit 25 such as a GPS receiver—to         record the location of the shooter.     -   f. An interface 26 for communication and/or power supply. The         interface may include any type of interface. For example, the         interface may include, a USB socket. The USB socket may be for         charging the rechargeable battery, for updating the software and         to download data (which was not transmitted over the air).         Additionally or alternatively the interface may include a         connection (plug or any other type of connector) to an electric         power grid. Additionally or alternatively, the interface may be         a wireless charging interface and may include a coil or an         inductor for inductance based or any other contactless charging         method.     -   g. A power source 27 such as a battery or rechargeable battery.     -   h. A memory module 28 for storing (at least temporarily) the         data gained by the shoot monitor.

According to an embodiment of the invention the shoot monitor may collect at least one of the following types of data:

-   -   a. A time of the event.     -   b. A type of the event: either cocking or shot.     -   c. The location of the shooter.     -   d. The angle of the hand of the shooter during the shooting         process.     -   e. The motion of the hand of the shooter during the shooting         process.

According to an embodiment of the invention the shoot monitor may be configured to transmit any gartered data (or selected part of the data) to the computer.

The data can be (also) stored in the shoot monitor itself where it remains and can be retrieved via the communication/power interface. This may be useful whe, for example, there is a communication breakdown.

The shoot monitor may be usually kept in a sleep mode in order to save energy. A wake-up command from the computer may switch the sensor to full operative mode.

The hits monitor

The hits monitor may include an acoustic sensor, a vibration sensor, an accelerometer, a contact sensor, an image sensor, a thermal sensor or any other type of sensor capable of sensing a hit of the target by a bullet. The hits monitor may include one or more sensors of one or more types. FIG. 2 illustrates two sensors 51 and 52 that may be of any of the mentioned above types.

When using sensors of more than one type then one type of sensor (for example an accelerometer) may trigger a sensing process by another type of sensor (for example an image sensor). Especially—an accelerator or an acoustic sensor that may sense the hit may trigger a camera to acquire an image of the target—for further analysis of the hit.

According to an embodiment of the invention the hits monitor may differentiate between a target that has been hit by a bullet and a target that has been hit by a ricochet—that is a skip off a surface resulting from a bullet that hit the vicinity of the target instead of the target.

When using an image sensor the system can apply one or more image processing technics to find the exact hit location.

The hits monitor and/or the computer may be configured to measure the average hit location of successive hits, or a combination of the two.

According to an embodiment of the invention the hits monitor may be configured to transmit any gartered data (or selected part of the data) to the computer.

The data can be (also) stored in the hits monitor itself where it remains and can be retrieved via the communication/power interface. This may be useful whe, for example, there is a communication breakdown.

The hits monitor may be usually kept in a sleep mode in order to save energy. A wake-up command from the computer may switch the sensor to full operative mode.

FIG. 3 illustrates method 300 according to an embodiment of the invention.

Method 300 may include the following steps:

-   -   a. Step 302 of waking-up the hits and shoot monitors. This can         be done over the air or by connecting the sensors to the         computer. The computer may execute a monitoring application.     -   b. Step 304 of synchronizing the clocks of the hits monitor,         shoot monitor and the application. Step 304 may be skipped and         the synchronization step may be replaced by registering the         values of the clocks of the hits monitor, shoot monitor and the         applications in order to determine the time differences between         these clocks. Step 304 may be done over the air or by connecting         the sensors to the computer     -   c. Step 306 of recording of the identifiers (IDs) of the shoot         monitor and the hits monitor.     -   d. Step 308 of informing the shooter that the shooting can         begin. The indication can be sent from the computer to the audio         and/or visual interface which is activated to provide the alert         to the user.     -   e. Step 310 of (a) monitoring, by the shoot monitor, the         shooting and/or the process that preceded the shooting and         includes the shooting, and (b) monitoring by the hits monitor         the hits (if such exist). Step 310 may include multiple         iterations of shooting and hit or miss events. Step 310 may         include storing data and/or transmitting data from the hits         monitor and/or the shoot monitor to the computer, updating in         real time (or not in real time), a personal display and/or the         shooter interface.     -   f. Step 312 of determining that a training session ended.     -   g. Step 314 of entering the shoot monitor and/or the hits         monitor to a sleep mode or to any low power mode.     -   h. Step 316 of generating results. The results may reflect data         about one or more shooter during one or more training sessions.

The result may include at least one of the following:

-   -   a. Number of shot     -   b. Number of hits     -   c. The score of the hit     -   d. Marking which shot hit the target and which shot missed.     -   e. Firing rate.     -   f. The time difference between consecutive shot.     -   g. The time it took to draw the weapon.     -   h. The time it took to cock the weapon.     -   i. The time from cocking to shooting.     -   j. The number of shots in a burst.     -   k. The hand position during the cocking and when the shot was         fired.     -   l. The location of the shooter when shooting.     -   m. The path the shooter used.

The result may be displayed in texts, tables, graphs and animation.

According to an embodiment of the invention an event type is analyzed in real time by using time domain and frequency domain of the sensor signal. Several signal parameters are calculated including event duration and power distribution. As a result the algorithm identifies the event type.

According to an embodiment of the invention, for the target sensor the sensor is configured to the highest sensitivity level. For single shot it is expected to measure single sharp event with high level impact. In case of multiple events within sub-second time interval it is classified as ricochet event.

FIG. 4 illustrates graph 400 that represents three axes readings (x, y and z axes readings) of a three axes accelerometer that monitors a fire phase.

FIG. 5 illustrates graph 500 that represents three axes readings (x, y and z axes readings) of a three axes accelerometer that monitors a cocking phase.

In the foregoing specification, the invention has been described with reference to specific examples of embodiments of the invention. It will, however, be evident that various modifications and changes may be made therein without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that the boundaries between logic blocks are merely illustrative and that alternative embodiments may merge logic blocks or circuit elements or impose an alternate decomposition of functionality upon various logic blocks or circuit elements. Thus, it is to be understood that the architectures depicted herein are merely exemplary, and that in fact many other architectures may be implemented which achieve the same functionality.

Any arrangement of components to achieve the same functionality is effectively “associated” such that the desired functionality is achieved. Hence, any two components herein combined to achieve a particular functionality may be seen as “associated with” each other such that the desired functionality is achieved, irrespective of architectures or intermedial components. Likewise, any two components so associated can also be viewed as being “operably connected,” or “operably coupled,” to each other to achieve the desired functionality.

Furthermore, those skilled in the art will recognize that boundaries between the above described operations merely illustrative. The multiple operations may be combined into a single operation, a single operation may be distributed in additional operations and operations may be executed at least partially overlapping in time. Moreover, alternative embodiments may include multiple instances of a particular operation, and the order of operations may be altered in various other embodiments.

Also for example, in one embodiment, the illustrated examples may be implemented as circuitry located on a single integrated circuit or within a same device.

Alternatively, the examples may be implemented as any number of separate integrated circuits or separate devices interconnected with each other in a suitable manner.

However, other modifications, variations and alternatives are also possible. The specifications and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative rather than in a restrictive sense.

In the claims, any reference signs placed between parentheses shall not be construed as limiting the claim. The word ‘comprising’ does not exclude the presence of other elements or steps then those listed in a claim. Furthermore, the terms “a” or “an,” as used herein, are defined as one or more than one. Also, the use of introductory phrases such as “at least one” and “one or more” in the claims should not be construed to imply that the introduction of another claim element by the indefinite articles “a” or “an” limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim element to inventions containing only one such element, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases “one or more” or “at least one” and indefinite articles such as “a” or “an.” The same holds true for the use of definite articles. Unless stated otherwise, terms such as “first” and “second” are used to arbitrarily distinguish between the elements such terms describe. Thus, these terms are not necessarily intended to indicate temporal or other prioritization of such elements. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

While certain features of the invention have been illustrated and described herein, many modifications, substitutions, changes, and equivalents will now occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. It is, therefore, to be understood that the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications and changes as fall within the true spirit of the invention. 

We claim:
 1. A method for monitoring shooting, the method comprises: sensing, by a shoot monitor that is coupled to a shooter, a shooting executed by the shooter; generating and transmitting to a computer shoot data reflecting the shooting executed by the shooter by the shoot monitor; sensing hits of a target by a hits monitor; generating and transmitting to the computer hits data reflecting the hits by the hits monitor; wherein the hits monitor differs from the shoot monitor; receiving, by a computer, the shoot data and the hits data; and generating, by the computer a result that is indicative of (a) the shooting executed by the shooter and (b) hits resulting from the shooting executed by the shooter.
 2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the shoot monitor comprises an elastic band that comprises one or more sensor.
 3. The method according to claim 1 wherein the shoot data reflects only a time and location of a firing phase of the shooting.
 4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the shoot data reflects a firing phase and a cock phase of the shooting.
 5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the shoot data reflects a firing phase, a cock phase and a draw phase of the shooting.
 6. The method according to claim 1 comprising providing an indication to the shooter, using the shoot monitor, that a shooting session started and that the shooting session ended.
 7. The method according to claim 1 comprising correlating between shots and hits based on timing information provided by the shoot monitor and by the hits monitor.
 8. The method according to claim 1 wherein the shoot monitor comprises an accelerometer and an acoustic sensor.
 9. The method according to claim 1 wherein the hits monitor comprises a first sensor for sensing an occurrence of a hit and a second sensor for sensing a location of the hit; wherein the second sensor is triggered by the first sensor.
 10. The method according to claim 1 comprising pairing shooting to hits.
 11. A system for monitoring shooting, the system comprises: a shoot monitor for sensing a shooting executed by the shooter and for generating and transmitting to a computer shoot data reflecting the shooting executed by the shooter; a hits monitor for sensing hits of a target and for generating and transmitting to the computer hits data reflecting the hits; wherein the hits monitor differs from the shoot monitor; a computer for (a) receiving the shoot data and the hits data; and (b) generating a result that is indicative of the shooting executed by the shooter and hits resulting from the shooting executed by the shooter.
 12. The system according to claim 11 wherein the shoot monitor comprises an elastic band that comprises one or more sensor.
 13. The system according to claim 11 wherein the shoot data reflects only a time and location of a firing phase of the shooting.
 14. The system according to claim 11 wherein the shoot data reflects a firing phase and a cock phase of the shooting.
 15. The system according to claim 11 wherein the shoot data reflects a firing phase, a cock phase and a draw phase of the shooting.
 16. The system according to claim 11 comprising providing an indication to the shooter, using the shoot monitor, that a shooting session started and that the shooting session ended.
 17. The system according to claim 11 comprising correlating between shots and hits based on timing information provided by the shoot monitor and by the hits monitor.
 18. The system according to claim 11 wherein the shoot monitor comprises an accelerometer and an acoustic sensor.
 19. The system according to claim 11 wherein the hits monitor comprises a first sensor for sensing an occurrence of a hit and a second sensor for sensing a location of the hit; wherein the second sensor is triggered by the first sensor.
 20. The system according to claim 11 comprising pairing shooting to hits. 